The Chicago Bears might have had the worst record last season, but that’s not stopping their general manager from setting sights on major prizes this season. Ryan Poles is entering his second season with the Bears. He made recent comments that should put the Green Bay Packers and the rest of the NFC North on notice.
Chicago Bears GM has plans for the NFC North
Poles made big claims last offseason. He said the Bears were “going to take the (NFC) North and never give it back.” In 2022, his team slept in the division’s basement as Poles started the Bears’ rebuild. In a recent interview with Jim Trotter of The Athletic, Poles said the Bears could compete to win the division this season:
“Poles, who believes the Bears should contend for the NFC North title this season, knows the team has yet to arrive. But he also says last season seems like a distant memory because the vibe within the locker room is so different.
“It’s not even close,” he says. “This is a different group; practice, meetings, the weight room. I feel like a family is starting to come together, even with the rookie class just showing up this past week. There’s just a different feeling.”
The Green Bay Packers have dominated the division lately
Those are lofty expectations for a team that was the worst in the NFL in 2022. The Bears have just one NFC North title since their 2010 win, which came in 2018. That was the last season Mike McCarthy was the head coach in Green Bay. Starting in 2019, the Packers won three division titles in a row with head coach Matt LaFleur. The Minnesota Vikings won last season.
Poles’ team needs to focus on winning a game in the NFC North before talking about winning the division the Detroit Lions are favored in. Poles regime with head coach Matt Eberflus went 0-6 in the division. The Bears have made some upgrades to the roster on paper, but they haven’t shown anything on the field since Poles said he was taking the North last year.
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